the project

One New York community bike shop, Recycle-A-Bicycle is working hard despite losing inventory in a flooded warehouse and shivering in unheated shops.

The relief efforts they are working on include providing bikes, baskets, and trailers to local organizations supplying the affected areas with food, water, and supplies. They are also looking to raise enough funds to increase their staff to meet the needs to provide mobile bike repair in the affected areas and build more bikes to support the effort. A mere $2,500 will help build their staff capacity.

Outreach would be geared toward low-income residents of Red Hook, Brooklyn, the Lower East Side of Manhattan, the Rockaways, Staten Island, Coney Island and other neighborhoods hit hardest by the hurricane.

Please consider making a gift to Recycle-A-Bicycle today to help their relief efforts. Any additional funds raised will go to support expanding this effort in the wake of the storm, as communities begin to rebuild.

Thank you to Bicycle Transportation Alliance in Portland, Bike Easy in New Orleans, League of American Bicyclists, Alliance for Biking and Walking and all of our friends for spreading the word.

the steps

1. Speak to partner groups on the ground to see what is needed.

2. Prepare donation bikes.

3. Deliver donation bikes to orgs and set up mobile bike repair stations where needed.

4. Try to partner with orgs and assist in other ways as everyone continues the long clean up effort.

why we're doing it

Hurricane Sandy has devastated numerous waterfront neighborhoods in New York City who are now without power, transportation and communications. Some neighborhoods lack cell phone service and receive information mainly by bike messengers delivering information to residents around the neighborhood. There is currently a gas shortage and many of the affected locations are hard to reach as mass transit has not fully recovered. Recycle-A-Bicycle trying to do what they can to help the neighborhoods hardest hit by Hurricane Sandy.

updates

Free Mobile Bike Repair in Red Hook

Recycle-A-Bicycle teamed up with POW! People on Wheels this past Saturday, November 10 to set up a free mobile bike repair station in Red Hook, Brooklyn. We were blessed to fix bikes and have conversations with many wonderful people in the neighborhood this weekend who are in good spirits although many still do not have power. Currently we are coordinating bike donations to other relief sites and would love to go out to do more bike repairs. More soon!

Eight Bikes Delivered Already

Posted 11/07/2012 - 6:24pm

Thank you so much to everyone from near and far who is helping to support efforts in the clean up and recovery of Hurricane Sandy. Our own warehouse and job training center received 3 feet of water in the storm surge that came with the hurricane and caused an electrical fire in the building. Though we still have no heat at any of our locations, we are keeping our fingers warm by fixing up bikes for our partners and friends helping with hurricane relief. Here's a snapshot of what is happening:

On Tuesday, November 6th Recycle-A-Bicycle donated and delivered eight Dutch bikes, helmets and bike locks to the Red Hook Initiative for them to use in the Hurricane Sandy Recovery efforts. The bikes will be used in transporting food, water, supplies and information to neighborhood residents. Red Hook is still without power and heat and cell phones are not working in the area so bike messengers delivering information is the primary way residents are getting news about warming centers, hot meals, legal aid, and polling site changes. We tried to take some photos, but it was very dark outside (no lights).

This Saturday we will be setting up a mobile bike repair station in Red Hook, Brooklyn. As bikes have become an important means of transport in the neighborhood in the last week, many bikes are also in need of minor repairs. For anyone that wants to join us or help volunteer in other ways this Saturday we will be in the neighborhood from 11am - 3pm. The location is TBD, you can check our Facebook or Twitter page (@RAB_NYC) for the latest on our whereabouts.

We have also donated bike baskets and bike racks to our friends at Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE) to aid in the distribution of food and supplies to residents in the Lower East Side and Chinatown.

“The 462 Halsey Community Garden would not be as far along as it is without the fund raising help of ioby. They were so helpful and accommodating, utilizing their fiscal sponsorship allowed us to save money on buying supplies!”